St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-11-26
THEY GOT THERE.
The Council Committee Will Manage
the Hospital.
CITY PHYSICIAN IN CHARGE.
A Spirited Fight in Council---Ald. Mills
Leads His Cohorts to
Victory.

There was an animated meeting of
the city council yesterday afternoon,
when the question as to which-the
council committee on health or hOspi-
tails or the supervision of the Door
should have charge of the new city hos
pital. The council was called to order
at 2:15 o'clock with all but four alder
men present. The clerk then read the
call for the special meeting. A confer
ence committee of three from the SUI
peryiSorS of the poor was present, and
on motion a committee of three from
the council, consisting of Aid. Mills, +.
NJ. Johnson and Stoft, was appointed
by the chair to meet the conference
committee and make report. A recess
was then taken until the committee
should return. After being out half an
hour the committee returned with re-
port. 1t was signed by Aid. Mills,
johnson, Stoft and Garvey and
recommended that the hospital be
placed in the hands of the city
physician, subject to the instruction of
the supervisors of the poor and the
council committee on health and the
hospitals. Aid. Mills then moved that
the hospital be placed under the charge
of the city physician. Aid. Gibbons OPP
posed this motion, saying that he did not
think it right to place such an lnStltu-
ton under the management of one man.
He thought it better that the supervi-
SOrS of the poor should have charge OF it.
The city physician, he said, was not
elected to run the hospital, and he did
not think it proper that the city phySl-
clan should have charge of it.
Aid. Mills stated that the supervisors
of the poor had proved themselves arbi-
trary, and he did not much like the idea
of placing the hospital in their hands.
Aid. L'Herault remarked that he did
not believe the council could change the
duties of the city physician, and reading
from the ordinances he showed that he
had been elected to act under the order
of the superintendent of the board of
supervisors of the poor. The alderman
did not think the committee on health
and hospital competent to have charge
of the hospital.
Aid. ClOugh 1 do not think any one
will suffer if this matter is left to the
committee on health and hospitals.
The supervisors of the poor are mainly
aldermen and there is no reason why
our council committee can not take
good care of the hospital. A committee
of three can run it better than COM
mittee of thirteen.
Aid. E. NJ. Johnson-It rather startles
me to find out that the council has no
authority over the city physician, and
that he is alone responsible to the super
intendent of the supervisors of the
poor. Our charter gives us the right to
establish hospitals and to direct who
shall care for the patients, and it seems
to me that we can direct our city
physician to do the work there. Some
of the supervisors of the poor seem to
have an idea that that body is superior
to the city council, when the
council has the power to abolish
is that some of the members are trying
to get up fight among their own num-
Der. 1t aStOnisheS me, and | don't know
what to make of it. 1t seems to me that
this council should keep the control of
this work, and that the committee on
health and hospital should have charge
of the hospital.
Aid. ClOutier-The statement made
by Aid. Johnson that some of the super
visOrS of the poor are at lOggerheadS
is not fact, / am happy to state. That
body has always had charge OF the poor
and sick of the city, and if the eX-
penses of the hospital are to be paid out
of the general city fund, and not charged
to our committee when another COM
mittee eXpends the money, we are salts
fed to let the committee on health and
hospitals run things.
Aid. L'Herault-The supervisors of
the poor have always reported to the
council promptly, l am glad to say, and
has no disrespect for the council, as
Mr.. johnson has stated.
A motion that the city hospital be
placed under the charge of the super
visOrs of the poor was on the point f
being put when Aid. Mills took the floor
and said he should oppose the motion
OH the ground that it would place the
matter in the hands of an outside
council. Aid. Gibson said he would
urge the adoption of the motion because
if the hospital was placed under the
charge of the supervisors of the poor
and city physician it would be prac
tically placing it under the charge of
one man. The motion was lost, and
motion to lay the whole matter on the
table was substituted by motion to
adjourn, which was also lost. The
original resolution by Aid. Mills that
the city hospital be placed in the imme-
date charge of the city physician to act
under the committee on health and hos
pital, to act in pursuance with the direc-
tors of the city council, was then put
and carried by vote of % to 4. Aid.
f. NJ. johnson at once moved to recon-
slider, as did also Aid. Gibson, but the
motion was lost. Aid. Cooley made
motion declaring the Northwestern hos
pital an annex to the city hospital for
female patients and children. Aid. E.
NJ. johnson said lie was in hearty SYM
pathy with the motion, but in view of
the action just taken wanted the matter
reported upon. He therefore moved to
refer the matter to the committee on
health and hospitals. His motion was
carried and the council djourned.